If you have to be into work early, then getting the dog's walk in before you leave means it's dark outside.

Allison has to take her dog, Birdie, out before 6am. "The problem is before I've had my coffee I'm really, really clumsy," she said, "it's dark, it's slippery and a light would be good.

The Animal Planet Pet Leash has a built in LED flashlight that that claims it can guide you on even the darkest walks. Allison popped in fresh batteries and headed out with Birdie.

Unfortunately, while the LED lights are easy on batteries, they are not very bright. "Well, honestly I thought that the light would be a lot brighter," she said, "and I'm not quite sure why."

Allison did like the built in cleanup bag holder and the extendable 16 foot leash that is supposed to hold up to 80 pounds pets. "In terms of the retractableness, that's really nice," she said.

We bought the leash at Bed, Bath and Beyond for $10. Allison thought that's a pretty good deal. "That's a great price for this because for a regular retractable leash," she said, "the cheapest I've seen is like $12."

And while she wished that the light was brighter, Allison said it should be enough to alert cars on the road. " I think that it's nice at 5:30, quarter to six in the morning when it's dark out." she said. "This is probably enough light to let people know that we're on the road."

So for the Animal Planet Pet Leash, what's Allison's and Birdie's rating? "I think the light could be a little bit brighter so for that reason I would give it one paw up an one paw down."